Side Two
Unknown Soldier: "Mama" is different kettle of fish altogether and the best on side two.
Anteater: Yeah, 'Mama' is nice. One of the three Kimball cowrites on the album.
Unknown Soldier: "Mama" easily could've been on the debut too and it's the only song on this album that really belongs more on the debut than on
Hydra.
Anteater: It's got a great groove, one of the best "Westcoast" songs in all of Toto's canon.
Unknown Soldier: Also Bobby Kimball does the lead vocals on the three last songs as well.
Anteater: Yep, and he helped write all three.
Anteater: …which means we're finally moving into Toto territory that isn't completely dominated by Paich.
Anteater: From Hydra onwards, every member of the band would start getting more co-writes or even solo credits.
Unknown Soldier: That's always refreshing and according to the credits "Hydra" was a band effort.
Unknown Soldier: The only one on the album.
Anteater: Yeah, which makes it rather special even if you took the 8-minute prog length away from it.
Anteater: But moving on, what do you think of 'White Sister'? As I mentioned before, I really like it. One of Kimball's shining rockier moments.
Unknown Soldier: "Mama" has a great groove, how much of that groove do you think the band owe to Steely Dan?
Unknown Soldier: As for your question, "White Sister" is solid rather than spectacular and well suited to Bobby Kimball's voice.
Anteater: 'Mama' is the better song between them, but I like how much 'White Sister' really rips once it gets a little over 3 minutes in.
Unknown Soldier: Toto were pretty good at ripping up a song with Bobby on vocals.
Unknown Soldier: I love when Bobby sings 'such a card game' which kind of describes what the rock industry was probably like at that time.
Anteater: Very much so. Which I suppose leads us to the "whimper' rather than bang-closer of the album, 'A Secret Love'.
Unknown Soldier: "A Secret Love" is like a reprise than an actual song, but the piano section is kind of unexpected
Unknown Soldier: To me, it sounds more like a Steve Porcaro song than a Bobby Kimball one.
Anteater: Just goes to show you: Bobby could out-Steve the master if he tried.
Unknown Soldier: Truth be told I don't really like the song that much and think they could've done a lot more with it.
Anteater: You’re right. I also think it sounds more like a reprisal than a song unto itself, which lends it an 'incomplete' feeling. It brings us back to the perspective of the protagonist from 'Hydra' and 'St. George...'
Anteater: One of the stranger closeouts to a Toto album, but not terrible by any means.
Unknown Soldier: So overall I think we agree that is a front-loaded album, despite the fact you think the last three are really great songs.
Unknown Soldier: "Mama" is the best of those closing songs by far, even though "White Sister" is solid.
Anteater: ‘Hydra’ is a fun record. Not as good as the debut obviously, but a lot of the songs from the self-titled were songs David Paich had written before the group ever formed.
Anteater: The first album had the benefit of Paich implementing his best material right from the get-go. Hydra, however, was the first album where the group tried writing together more as a unit, so of course it’s more of a mixed bag.
Unknown Soldier: Good points. I classify ‘Hydra’ as one of my favourites simply for the first three tracks and the mystical imagery that the album cover has, that's also contained in the lyrics and videos of the singles as well.
Unknown Soldier: Not as strong as the debut but an indulgent venture away from the more free flowing debut.
Anteater: 'Hydra' was Toto figuring out what they wanted to be whilst grappling with an unprecedented level of success.
Unknown Soldier: For comparison’s sake…the Toto debut kind of mirrors the Steely Dan debut "Can't Buy A Thrill" but whereas Steely Dan then went even deeper for their core sound on "Countdown To Ecstasy" Toto did the unexpected on Hydra.
Anteater: They wanted to stretch their capabilities. Without doing that, I don't think we'd have gotten some of their best future material.
Anteater: On another note, I can also tell Paich had probably been spending time with Ambrosia's 1978 release 'Life Beyond L.A.' before he jumped into writing for 'Hydra'. The two albums share a similar aesthetic.
Unknown Soldier: I've not heard that album but will probably listen to it tomorrow now.
Anteater: Both records have darker title tracks.
Anteater: Plus bigg emphasis on keyboard/piano leads…
Unknown Soldier: In conclusion: I wouldn't pick Hydra out for a Toto newbie to listen to: it should come later to really appreciate the quality of the opening three tracks.
Anteater: It's not an accessible album compared to IV, the self-titled or The Seventh One.
Anteater: Still, definitely worth checking out, especially for those who enjoy it when bands shoot for the moon.
Unknown Soldier: Don't you think
Fahrenheit is accessible?
Anteater: Yes and no, but we'll leave that for another weekend.